Forty-three votes separated Democratic challenger Scott Colom and Republican incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith on Wednesday morning, leaving Mississippi’s U.S. Senate race as one of the most closely contested midterm contests in the country. With more than 95 percent of the vote counted, the race remained uncalled as both campaigns braced for an extended count of provisional ballots.
An Unprecedented Red-State Nail-Biter
Mississippi has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1982, and President Donald Trump carried the state by 20 points during the 2024 elections. Yet as results trickled in early Wednesday, Colom held 462,821 votes to Hyde-Smith’s 462,778 votes, with independent candidate Ty Pinkins drawing 19,935 votes, according to WLBT. Because federal general elections in Mississippi do not trigger a runoff, the candidate who finishes with a plurality claims the seat. Colom, a 43-year-old Columbus-based district attorney and seventh-generation Mississippian, focused his campaign on cost of living, health care, and hospital preservation. In earlier election cycles, Hyde-Smith drew 487,000 votes to win with 54% in 2018, and pulled in 710,000 votes to win again with 54% in 2020.
The neck-and-neck tally unfolded against a backdrop of sweeping Democratic gains nationally. Democrats flipped seats across several Republican strongholds, securing enough seats to take control of the chamber in the new year. Political analysts noted that voter frustration over high grocery and gas prices, alongside a stagnant economy, created severe headwinds for Republican incumbents.
Both Campaigns Express Confidence as Outstanding Ballots Await Review
Addressing supporters at a Wednesday morning news conference, Colom declared that outstanding ballots would carry him to victory. Where we are, where the ballots are, we’re gonna win,
Colom said. This is our election. We’ve won it. The people have done it. They’ve decided to go in a new direction. I’m confident of that.
He added, I am going to serve with integrity,
and I am going to serve with honesty, transparency. I never planned to be just another Democratic senator. I planned to be Mississippi’s Democratic senator.
🚨Mississippi U. S. Senate🚨 🔵 Scott Colom – 48.9% 🔴 Cindy Hyde-Smith (Inc) – 48.9% (Colom leads by 65 votes) 99% of expected votes in
The outcome now depends on thousands of uncounted affidavit ballots statewide. The Colom campaign estimated that between 10,000 and 15,000 provisional ballots remain to be reviewed and tabulated, a process that could take up to five business days. To safeguard the outcome, Colom emphasized that his campaign prepared extensively for a post-election legal battle. We have an army of lawyers. We have local lawyers; we have everybody involved to make sure the process goes according to the law,
he said. Mississippi allows mail ballots to arrive up to five business days after Election Day as long as they carry a postmark from Election Day.
Meanwhile, the Hyde-Smith campaign maintained its own optimism. In a written statement, her team stated, Our campaign is closely monitoring the remaining count. We remain confident that when every legally cast vote is fully and accurately counted, Mississippians will have reelected Cindy Hyde-Smith.
Hyde-Smith had earlier told her watch party crowd that she maintained a strong position while awaiting final tabulations, stating, We are in a very good lead right now. We still don’t have all the votes in, so we’re not calling all of it tonight, but we’re in a very good lead, and I assure you I will continue to be your U.S. Senator.
Uncharted Legal Territory in Mississippi
The razor-thin margin places Mississippi in an unusual procedural position. Mississippi is the only state with no statutory recount provisions governing federal general elections. While the state’s election handbook outlines rules for contesting county, district, and state legislative races, it provides no mechanism for an automatic recount or contest in a U.S. Senate general election.
Election law experts point out that the situation parallels the 2017 Alabama Senate special election, where federal rules also omitted state recount procedures. In such cases, legal remedies are typically confined to challenging individual ballot inclusion or exclusion decisions under state or federal law. Furthermore, the U.S. Constitution grants the Senate final authority to judge the elections and returns of its own members, meaning the chamber itself could ultimately decide the outcome if the margin remains microscopic.
Mississippi, we’re feeling really good about tonight! Y’all have shown up and SHOWN OUT! Votes are still being counted in Lowndes and the Delta, and we’ve got 15,000+ affidavit ballots out. Buckle up, Mississippi. Change is coming, and we’re going to get this done! pic.twitter.com/cx8lq5JVjc
Other Mississippi Congressional Contests
While the U.S. Senate contest remained undecided, other federal races across Mississippi were called early in the evening. In the 3rd Congressional District, incumbent Republican Michael Guest finished with 143,371 votes against Democratic challenger Michael Chiaradio, who finished with 101,090 votes. Representative Mike Ezell also secured a dominant lead to win his respective race earlier in the evening.
Earlier coverage: Early projections and data emerge from 2026 US midterm elections